Conveyors: power-driven – Conveyor section – Load simultaneously engaged between and moved by a plurality...
Reexamination Certificate
2001-08-17
2003-07-29
Valenza, Joseph E. (Department: 3651)
Conveyors: power-driven
Conveyor section
Load simultaneously engaged between and moved by a plurality...
C198S725000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06598731
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF INVENTION
The present invention describes a feed mechanism used with a conveyor belt system to transport objects.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A wide variety of powered conveyor systems have been developed for transporting objects. Referring to
FIG. 1
, conveyor systems typically include a conveyor belt
101
, pulleys
103
and a drive mechanism
105
. The conveyor belt
101
is mounted tautly around pulleys
103
and a drive mechanism
105
rotates at least one of the pulleys
103
causing the conveyor belt
101
to move. Objects
107
placed on the conveyor belt
101
are transported from one end to the other.
In some applications additional force is required to move an object off of the end of a conveyor belt. For example, food products are often transported from a conveyor belt into a processing machine such as a slicing machine which requires additional force. Various methods have been developed for assisting in transporting objects off then end of a conveyor belt. In the food processing industry, mechanical metal claws have been attached to a food product and used to mechanically drive the product through the slicing machine. Problem with this system include: wasted material and inefficiency. More specifically, the part of the food product that is attached to the metal claw cannot be sliced without damaging the blades of the slicing machine and must be discarded. The food products transported to the slicing machine, must be attached to the claw typically by a worker which is time consuming and less efficient than an automated processing system.
Another method of assisting in transporting objects over a conveyor belt is the use of secondary conveyor belts which contact the top of objects being transported. U.S. Pat. No. 3,703,231 describes a conveyor system having several feeder conveyor belts mounted in parallel over a single lower conveyor belt. The feeder conveyor belt system of U.S. Pat. No. 3,703,231 is illustrated in FIG.
2
. Object
207
travels on the lower conveyor belt assembly
211
which comprises: a feeder conveyor belt
203
, an upper pulley
205
and a lower pulley
209
. The feeder conveyor belt
203
rotates about the upper pulley
205
and the lower pulley
209
and the feeder conveyor belt assembly
211
rotates about the upper pulley
205
. The rotational force of feeder conveyor belt
203
is applied to the object
207
and the vertical movement of the feeder conveyor belt assembly
211
conforms to the shape of the object
207
.
Referring to
FIG. 3
, a drawback of the feeder conveyor belt of U.S. Pat. No. 3,703,231 is that a large object
205
that contacts the feeder conveyor belt
203
may lift the feeder conveyor belt
203
causing it to loose contact with a smaller object
207
. What is needed in an improved feeder conveyor system capable of applying force to individual objects in close proximity.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is a feeder conveyor belt system which assists in propelling objects traveling on a lower conveyor belt. The feeder conveyor belts rotates about pulleys mounted on a movable linkage system. The linkage system allows the feeder conveyor belt to adjust to the contour of objects of various shapes. Objects traveling on the lower conveyor belt contact the feeder conveyor belt which applies a driving force to the top of the object. The suspension system allows vertical movement such that the feeder conveyor belt can apply a driving force to closely spaced objects.
REFERENCES:
patent: 163077 (1875-05-01), Jackson
patent: 1108163 (1914-08-01), Frick
patent: 1232422 (1917-07-01), Halvorsen
patent: 2133727 (1938-10-01), Staude
patent: 3703231 (1972-11-01), Montomery, Jr.
patent: 4060167 (1977-11-01), Smith
patent: 4502586 (1985-03-01), Dusel et al.
patent: 5358092 (1994-10-01), Cinotti
patent: 6296107 (2001-10-01), Baumgartner-Pichelsberger
Dergosits & Noah LLP
Eldetco, Inc.
Valenza Joseph E.
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